Happy New Year! Time for all that 'new year, new you' stuff that everyone apparently hates!

Say hello to the motivation dragon! Fuelled by the underestimation of those you barely know.

​I too am as nihilistic and misanthropic as the worst of us on some days and in my darker moments my sense of humour could cut through steel - however if I get enough sleep and quality husband & kitty time I am basically sunshine in a bottle.

Although, if you want to make a change, why the hell not now? It's as good a time as any and what everyone else thinks doesn't actually matter so if you want to do something new or improve something, go for it! Also in my case someone saying 'ha, you won't make it past week one' is fuel for the fire. You, sir or madam, have awoken the motivation dragon. I might not do it for my health, but I will do it to prove an arbitrary point to a passing aquaintance. For this, friends, is the human condition. ​So 2016 is done. And so much the better for that I think. For me personally it was a bit of a transformative year, mostly for the positive. New career, new cats, new social commitments, new outlook! I'm in much better life balance shape than this time last year which I'm pretty proud of.

The world as a whole had a real mixed time. What I would love to happen is that in 40 years time there's a kind of 2016 club with a bunch of the babies born in 2016 now doing amazing things in 2056 - very possibly a lot of future great scientists, artists, philosophers, educators, human rights activists were all born this past year.​Resolutions

I have a bunch of things I generally don't think of as resolutions, just stuff I'm working on. One does tie in with the New Year which is to do with exercise and healthy eating and sleeping - partly because I'm a sucker for the chocolate, cheese and booze sabotage month also known as December. It's too hard to make that kind of change at Christmas so January it is. But I'm trying to get my head on right about it - it's getting time back at the gym and having something to look forward to do like fun classes I like rather than a constant slog. Same for veggies, but I love veggies so there's not much problem there. Sleep too is a big part of this equation. As a long time insomniac I have actually been doing really well on the sleep pattern building for the last few months. January is cold and miserable, but the gym is warm and the veggies are bright!

I am planning to give a vegan February a go as a bit of a cooking experiment so we will see how that goes. I don't know that its right for me long term, but I like the challenge of cooking new things. I have a few vegan pals so it'll be nice to know I can whip up more than one thing if they are round for tea.

Finances - despite having blown plenty on Christmas I still managed to save something this month! For the first time in years. And I've made some steps forward in managing/improving my personal finances which I've been trying to do for ages. Staying the course is my goal this year.

A couple of more personal things I'm working on are - when enough's enough and not sorry, but thank you. What the hell am I talking about? Well, allow me to get all script font on a landscape background inspirational on you...

When enough's enough- for me means participating in as much as I can, but knowing when to say no because I need time to rest. Yes, I have the luxury to pick and choose what I do in my free time and I appreciate it massively because it might not always be that way. I want to be fully there when I attend something. I want to be on time and have the energy and focus to give it my all and enjoy it. So I've picked a couple of big things that I want to be my best at and give myself permission to back off other tasks when I need to. Also if I dread something, can I make it better? If not, why the hell am I still doing it?

Not sorry, but thank you- this is basically instead of groveling with insecure apologies all the time, just saying cheers instead. So instead of apologising to my husband or my friends for being a terrible, annoying awful human being I say 'hey thanks for being my friend, it's really great and I appreciate it'. My hope is that this will:

a) make my loved ones more aware of how awesome they are.

b) reduce automatic self doubt. It's important to be self aware of your limits and stuff you can improve, but you also have to try not to just derail yourself with low self esteem.

c) save sorry for when I really need it. Give it real weight and meaning not just a default setting.

What am I doing about the world in 2017? Well, trying to be more responsible, brave and kind. Keep voting, keep reading, keep protesting, keep calling things out, and give what I can when I can.

So there you go. My saccharine approach to this fresh year... Hope it's a belter for us all! xxx

You can be going along your merry little way, trying hard, not thinking too much and then BAMM! The blues hit you out of nowhere. For some it's just a week of feeling out of sorts, for others it's a constant struggle just to get out of bed, and for a few it's somewhere in between. You can get up, but you may feel like crying on the train and can't figure out why. Then you feel guilty for feeling sad. Then you feel worse and on it goes...

There are plenty of times when the thing that has you down is pretty fecking obvious. It's staring you right in the face; you know exactly what it is. It's a tangible problem that you may or may not have an answer for right now. And that is a rough time, there is no denying. Other times though it makes no sense at all. You're trying your hardest to just be good, live a life, show up and instead anxiety, depression, insomnia, all that fun shit just goes NOPE, not today, buddy!​September is a weird month. I've never particularly liked it and for the last couple of years have managed to be out of the country focused on work or travel. I don't know why, but September freaks me out. Autumn is my favourite time, but I just want to fast forward to October already. But September is also a bunch of other good things - people are doing Sober September, H2o Only Project, Self-Care September and it's also Suicide Prevention awareness this month. And there's the #unfilteredlife project too. And it's a bunch of my friends birthdays, happy birthday guys! Sandwiched you in there...

Feeling completely worthless is horrible. You are worth something! I promise. But I know it's hard to believe sometimes (especially from some random blogger) even when those who love you tell you so. Partly because you feel so wretched it's hard to accept love as being a real thing at all. All I can say is, personally I've felt it, I've seen it and I believe in it, but if you're surrounded by arseholes it may be a tad difficult to get a grip on. Lose the arseholes and love yourself a little bit!

If you're feeling awful reach out, call a helpline, chat with your doctor, call a pal. No-one can just magically just get better alone; everyone needs help to do great things.

Sometimes the thing you need is in fact a rest, but an actual rest. Time off the day job doesn't automatically mean that.

Things I've found helpful, not saying they'll work for everyone, but they've helped me a little bit so maybe there's one or two things that might be useful:

sleep, actual real sleep. It's an elusive bastard at the best of times, but giving yourself permission to just actually rest is a rare and wonderful thing. Sleeping pills are the devil. Acupressure - surprisingly helpful!

volunteering - for literally any kind of charity thing, even helping do a very small tiny thing. Donating blood if you can. Buy a Big Issue. Sign a government petition. Support a local shop. It's harder to argue with yourself about being worthless when there's empirical evidence of you out there being fucking useful and engaging with the world.

cleaning - some days you can't see the point in getting dressed. So don't, but do give yourself a kind loving wash and maybe tidy up a teeny bit on put on some clean jammies. Look after yourself.

feed yourself - fill yourself up with goodness, veggies and the like. Cook something really nice if you're into it or just bang some half decent soup in the microwave if not. But take time over eating. Take time to notice you're putting something good into yourself. Because you believe it will help you heal and because it's fuel for something you will strong enough again to do soon.

get out of your comfort zone - this doesn't have to be an expensive trip somewhere (though also nice if you can) - this can literally be a library book. Immerse yourself in a different kind of world. Read about something new, watch a new show, read about another country, another time online. Listen to music from somewhere else in the globe. If you're feeling stronger try something new. Hula hoops and trampolines can be fun. Knitting is also brilliant.

write it down - for me anyway because I'm some kind of writer (legit, I am writing this book that 3 people want to read), I write stuff down. I just write and write until things make sense. I start with a few sentences about how bad I feel, or how much of a failure I am (depending on the day of the week) and then it all just tumbles out. Then I can read and decide to use it as constructive points or just burn it - either way I feel better.

seeing the doctor - hit and miss for a long time, but I've finally found a doctor who is efficient, but very helpful and actually listens. And that is worth finding. You feel lighter just walking out of an appointment when someone has actually listened to you for five minutes.

be a pal - would talk to your friend the way you talk to yourself? No, you'd probably fight someone who talked about them that way. So be your own pal.

try to remember what you love - before this, before the abyss, before the black void - what did you like? music? going to the park? sticking your tongue out in the rain? wriggling your toes in the sand? did you have a favourite chocolate bar? Finding just one of these can be a great comfort when you feel like you've forgotten who you are.

animals - I can't overstate the healing powers of pets. My cats are lifelines. But so is watching Foster Kittens on Instagram.

Maybe everything on this list seems too hard right now, but you made it through the whole page so well done! Life is the longest, hardest thing we do (that we know about, I can't speak for the future robot uprising) but there's joy to be had in there too. Lots and lots of love and squishy hugs from Racy xxxx

If you hit on this blog because of my vintage stuff you may be wondering where my dress reviews have gone and why I've not posted much in the way of vintage/retro styling stuff in ages...

Basically my camera broke in October and I still haven't got it fixed. Because my priorities are a mess, that's why! I did get a new phone in June, but I haven't been able to take any 'professionalish' snaps since last year so there's been a hold on clothing reviews. Also as a freelancer my income has become more unpredictable (and I got cats to feed first) so my shopping habit has dried up. For now. That being said I still have a ton of stuff to review and discuss from the last couple of years sales so as soon as my beautiful Nikon is repaired the blogging shall resume!

If you follow me on Instagram you'll see I do post outfit of the day stuff (though not as zealously as I could). I also tend to post hair/make-up as well.

Anyway, I am still very much into the whole vintage look thing so it will be returning to the blog. In the meantime please do follow on Insta!

I've been playing around the idea of starting some kind of Glasgow vintage style society? Like just a weekly meet up where people come and practice how to do cool hair styles and make up, show off their fave retro style outfits, maybe drink tea and chat. I've not worked it out yet, but maybe... very low key for fun kind of thing. I'm no professional (see above) but I do like to have fun with the hair thing. Will let you know if I actually do something about it! xx

Look I have to live with him, with the endless drums, the relentless mixing, the hours of music-making that goes on in this house and damnit - some of it turned out quite good!

Little Hands of Silver are a noisy alt rock trio from Glasgow. These lads can play, they play loud AND they are the kind of guys who will chat to you after the gig and will muck in and help load other bands gear without question. All three of them have been playing for years and have learnt a thing or two in that time. Mostly about disturbing food combinations and the limits of their own filth, but some technical music stuff also crept through.

​They are creative multi-instrumentalists and all fucking LOVE playing more than most other things. Obviously Rockin' Roy is the man I've chosen to build a home, life and family with, Douglas is a wee legend + one of my bestest pals and Jordan aka Jordy O'da Sesh on account of his love of wearing vests and going out on the sesh. Good dudes and their music is also good.

'Loading...' by Little Hands of Silver - available now www.lhos.co.uk

LHOS just launched their first EP 'Loading...' and are headlining a night at this years immense Heavy Metal Buffet festival - the heaviest most metalist buffet in the history of the known world.

​If you can get to Shetland you are one lucky mother, and if not I believe the Buffet may be streaming the event online so you can still join in the fun. ​But if you can get there - GO because the passion and effort that goes into running this thing is amazing. And metal as fuck. Look at this epic poster FFS -

Heavy Metal Buffet - Poster credit Dirk Robertson and Letty Bishöp

At LHOS's recent EP launch party for 'Loading...' I did some dj-ing which the most fun I've had in ages. Gig photos from the gig will be going up on their website soon, but here are a few social snaps -

LHOS also played a gig at Bar Bloc the other day with the INCREDIBLE Kut girls who are currently on tour round the UK. Catch them if you can, will be one of the best gigs you've ever seen I guarantee. I was lucky enough to fill in as their photographer for the night and they are fucking legends.

The Kut at Bar Bloc (pics taken by Rachael Carmen Simpson, owned by the Kut)

See the rest of the photos on their Facebook page and check out their tour dates!

LHOS have named their robot head Oscar - based on my artwork of the LHOS robot. Hoping the robot continues to be a theme, because despite the terrifying implications of the singularity, robots are fun.

Annnndddd a small self plug - I am available to help out other bands playing in Glasgow with photography, poster design (I also made LHOS' ep launch party poster as above in the photo album) and djing in general. I'm very cheap and pretty friendly to work with so hit me up on Twitters!

I recently undertook the responsibility of feline pet management. PEOPLES! I haz cats now! I have it on good authority (pinterest, other such sites) that intellectuals, writers and depressives often favour cats. And, yes this seems correct. Completely insignificant meaningless correlation? Yes, this seems correct.

Rockin' Roy and I are now lucky enough to live with two of these blasted critters, meet Marvel -

And also meet DC -

I have wanted my very own pets, or rather to live with some cool animals guys, my entire life. It's taken 33 years, but here we are! Dream achieved! I cannot tell you how much this means to me. My life now is very different to how it was this time last year.

A few months ago I made the decision to leave my job and pursue fiction writing. I loved a lot of stuff about my job, but I reached a point where I felt I drastically needed to shake my life up and also write stuff. Which I am doing. No really, I actually am writing things, whole sentences are going into documents and everything. Apparently that's all there is to it. That and the crippling fear...

​Am I as prolific as I thought I would be? HAHAHAHAHA HELL NO. It's hard, but yes I actually am adding to that word count very slowly. I know a lot people manage to juggle tough careers, families, and still get their books done and maybe I will too, but for this summer at least I was working on a whole bunch of personal things and was lucky enough to be able to give myself a break. So I took it. That opportunity might never come up again so now was the time.

How are we surviving at the moment? Well, we live differently. Our budget is tight. Roy's baring the brunt of our financials for a bit and I am ebaying the ever-loving crap out of my worldly goods. I had too much stuff anyway, unfortunately not much of it was expensive to begin with. I hope to join the gainfully employed again soon in some capacity and to continue writing. My professional CV is pretty solid, but is there also a market for origami skills, darkly humourous film reviews, tarot reading, djing and life advice? Because I'm available.​What am I writing? A three part fantasy novel series, a graphic novel and a couple of short stories. Yes I'm working on them all at once. Focus and get one finished you say? Never! This is how my brain works, I'll see you in hell! OK, maybe I'll do that at some point.

Anne Enright reminds us about writing "The first 12 years are the worst."

Less about me, more about the cats! They are kittens and averaging it out they bring me 10,000+ joy to 58 frustration. The scratches, the yowling, the not being able to eat a single meal without them trying to steal it, the attacking my knitting - nothing compared to belly rubs and little balls of fluff purring themselves to sleep on your lap. Nothing to the comedy of seeing two tiny kittens fight over a piece of string. Nothing to the look of joy and contentment I see on my friends faces when they come to visit and my two teeny fur babies make their problems melt away for an hour. Cats are the best. (also shout out to my friends with ratties, dogs, bunnies and so on, also best).

Marvel is a boy and DC a girl from the same litter of five. I was getting updates before they were even born and am in contact with the mama cat's owner and my friend has one of their brothers. They are approaching 4 months old and already their personalities are very clear. Marvel is much bolder, noisier, more affectionate and more of a nuisance. DC is quieter, cautious, and like to hide when she hunts. Marvel likes to catch, DC likes to chase. Marvel is a devil for any human food, DC will eat whatever's in her bowl. Marvel likes to be held up high. DC likes to have her paws massaged. Marvel sees zero problem with sticking his claws into me to help him leap on to somewhere else. DC is mortally terrified of Mr. Hoover.

​They kind of recognise their names. They definitely recognise me and Roy. They are both heart breakingly beautiful to me and more fun than I could have imagined. They both like to sleep on my lap more than anywhere else - I think because I am always unnaturally warm. They are indoor cats and we provide lots of toys and playtime.

​They are good with people and we've been making an effort to keep them well socialised. And possibly socialist. But that's another story...

Pondering our thoughts on Political democracy as the necessary framework and precondition for other rights and liberties.

You can follow DC & Marvel on their Instagram! It's there because its fun and purely for the sake that pictures of my cute kittens might in some way brighten someone's day a bit.

Anyway today's post. I've seen this thing going around which is like a list of the worst however many films you've ever seen so I'm doing that. I'm gonna say...10, the worst ten films I've ever seen. I'm angry Kent, angry and tired, about a lot of things, about misogyny, about racism, about injustice. But this blog isn't the place for that outlet (I have others). So today is movie ranting, 'cos why not.

This list is not a critical insight into script, the use of mise en scene or the directors vision - it's just movies that I personally think are garbage because life is more fun when you rant. You may love these movies. Remember, MY DISLIKE OF THEM DOES NOT DIMINISH YOUR ENJOYMENT. Many of these made millions and I doubt the people involved will ever see my tiny blog so this is just for us Racy Rae readers. Enjoy.

1. You've Got Mail. Watched at a sleepover once. Interminable. I'm pretty sure this film is 9000 hours long. It JUST WOULDN'T END. I have a lot of time for Tom Burbs Hanks, but Christ on a flying unicycle this saccharine tale of outdated media makes the bile rise in my gullet. Endless, in fact it's been over a decade and I'm pretty sure its still on. AOL dial up.

2. E.T.I can feel the death threats coming. Did not care for it, despite my love of sci-fi. Yes I saw it as a kid. I'm gonna just punch this home - don't like the Goonies either. Boom. And yet my husband still won't leave me.

3. Memento.Pish. Utter Pish. Naw. Just Naw. 'but it's a masterpiece, it's so moody and clever, you can watch in the correct order on the special features!' Yes, and it's even MORE tedious. Don't care, don't care, don't care. Boring needless moody crap with no engaging characters. GREY.

4. Ooh, I'm struggling now, what else do I hate? I mean, is the worst. See I actually like a lot of stuff because I'm secretly very positive - hold up, TREE OF LIFE.Now, some shots in this are very beautiful, but it's just hours of my life I'll never get back. Hours I could have spent putting my cat pictures on Instagram, hours I could have spent rewatching Red Dwarf with the commentary again, hours I could have spent thinking about how I should do some exercise at some point in the 2010s, but Terrance Malik robbed me of those precious moments with this dawdling high concept art piece. Itching in my chair from the first birth of planet sequence. I've seen Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqatsi, and Naqoyqatsi. I'm good. I'm done. I do not need Tree of fucking Life.

5. Mulholland Drive.I won't say I loathe it exactly, but I once called it 'too commercial' and nearly started a student pub riot. I stand by my remarks.

6. Eraser Head.This almost doesn't make the list because I have a great memory of watching this and a running joke with my friend about an ad campaign concept based on troublesome alien babies, but I rely heavily on porridge in my diet and I was right off it for a month.

​7. Event HorizonHEAR ME OUT. This is not here because it is the worst. It is not here because it is bad. It is here because IT IS EVIL. This is a film I would keep in the freezer if I wasn't terrified it would infect my veggies. I am not scared of much (dying alone, pain, that my attempts at making the world a better place are vastly outpaced by corporate consumption and corruption and I'm nothing but a drain on resources swirling through the inertia towards inevitable entropy and death, that my cats secretly hate me) but this movie gives me the heebie jeebies.

​8. What Women Want.I, I don't have to explain this do I? You, you get it right. Mel...and the title...and the execution... OK good.

9. This Means War. As above. Like, what? And I watched the whole thing. Because Reese. But no. No.

And now a palate cleanser - a bunch of films I love! Run Lola Run, High Spirits, Mad Max Fury Road, Blues Brothers, What We Do in the Shadows, Drive, Battle Royale, Black Sheep, Wayne's World, In the Company of Wolves, The Princess Bride, Only You, Tucker and Dale Vs Evil, Evil Dead.

More posts to come. Probably. I mentioned the cats, right?

I encourage you all to make a list of films you also hate, then to watch something you love because it's kind of cathartic!

I wrote this post in NOVEMBER!!! But I've not had time/energy/motivation (delete as appropriate) to do much blog stuff lately. I have however managed to watch a metric shit-tonne of TV. Included in that was Marvel's much anticipated Jessica Jones.

[chants] WWJJD? Something smart and whiskey-fuelled!

So I'm a big fan of the show. If you are not, then my friend think of the thing you do love and go seek it out on the great wide internet, go free! This is gonna be a here are all the reasons I love Jessica Jones post. It's not a perfect show yet, but it's pretty damn good.

1. Krysten Ritter (and all the casting basically - we'll get into that). Ritter has the moxie and heart to pull off this hard drinking, smart thinking, ass-kicking survivor. I like Ritter a lot as she has great range right across drama and comedy. She gives us wit, panic, strength, deception, analysis, lust, fear, reluctance, love and more without missing a beat. She's handles the weight of the show's subject matter and just the general challenge that any actor has of being a lead, brilliantly. Swoon and also Yeahh!

2. The rest of the cast - Nathan! Kilgrave! Trish! LUKE SWEET FREAKING CHRISTMAS CAGE! Super exited about the Luke Cage series. Hograth, my total fave anti-hero - If I wrote fan-fic it would be completely non-sexual and it would just Jeri Hograth and Saul Goodman trying to outwit each other before a case went to trial. I also love Trish, I'm completely buying her as a radio host, like I would tune into her show each morning if it were a real show.

3. Friendship - Trish and Jessica, and their real genuine friendship. I believe these besties, particularly where one of them hasn't been in contact in months and the other is just like 'hey I will just continue to show up at your door until I know you are ok'. Also they believe in each other. They have zen level having-each-other's-back skills. And Trish is who Jessica picks in the end as her accomplice, she is the key to her success against Killgrave. Relationship Goals.

4. Jokes - "Killgrave, what was Murder-Corpse taken?". Slayed.

5. The drinking, honestly I know in TV land is not a good thing and it's a hint of her troubled past and coping mechanism, but honestly she is like the only woman I've seen who can drink a bit much and it's just drinking a bit much (though her super strength gives her a tolerance I can appreciate). It's a thing her character does, not what her character IS.

6. Sexy times - Luke and Jessica, Trish and Will, Jeri and Pam. It's a very sexy series and all these characters are owning it. It's not sensationalised, it NOT all from the male perspective (which shouldn't be unique, but y'know pop culture is kind of a mess), it's people who have been through bad times, but are still sexual beings. It's passionate but not violent. It makes sense for the story. Luke & Jessica bed breaking FTW, phew! Good sexy work.

7.The representation of rape and abuse, and the aftermath - there's been a lot written about this hailing JJ's portrayal of all these things, and yup it's on point. It does great things with this opening series, one example of this is the fact that no-one can see what Kilgrave's up to so it's just easier for them to just dismiss Jessica and Hope. Even when an entire police station experience his powers first-hand, they dismiss it rather than face it. It literally takes multiple deaths, injury and suicide for the authorities and public to accept the truth. Jessica's story is difficult, and even though this is a universe where alien and superheroes are part of the day to day - a difficult story is just too much work.

8. Villains: Killrgave - David Tennant brings menace to this character in a way I think only he could. Killrgave never has to psychically hit anyone. He uses mind control, invisible to the world. He's petty, obsessive and truly terrifying. Jessica could crush him without even needing to readjust her leather jacket, but he reaches into her core mentally and very nearly destroys her.

9. Costuming! Jessica dresses like a real person. Double demin. Boots. Vests. She's set us up for the easiest cos-play ever. Luke's yellow shirt. Killgrave's purple scarves. She has pockets, this is important.

10. Nathan's arc. For me, Nathan has the best arc in the whole show. He goes from background character played for some awkward laughs and to demonstrate Jessica's caring side though to overcoming his addiction, dealing with his past and becoming a pillar of support others. Nathan has a kind of strength Jessica is still looking for (or avoiding depending on your take). She saves him, then asks him to help her, and man, Nathan steps up!

11. Weirdos. I love me some weird characters who are just fucking weird. Jessica's neighbour twins fit the bill here. They play an important part in the story, and I'm still in bits over Ruben, but Robyn's off the wall freakiness is great. This show is full of women being interesting unusual characters without falling into tropeyness.

12. Fight scenes and settings. THAT CLUB. THAT PORT AUTHORITY. 'Get off the stage you wanker!'

13.Cross-over. Aside from Luke Cage, my favourite TV nurse Claire is back! Rosario Dawson acting the shit out of things again. Every time I see her on Daredevil, I'm like 'damn, why Rosario Dawson not in more things?'

14. Lighting. Creepy purple lights. Killgrave. Oh no. Oh noooo.

​15. Who run the world? Girls - that scene where Will is in his skants while a fully clothed Jessica and Trish discuss strategy then tell him his opinion is not required and he backs the fuck down. YAS. Put on some pants Sergeant Simpy.

16. Tunes. Death From Above 1979 for some disturbing target practise. Excellent song. Mostly though, the show stays with it's own compositions and theme music, ensuring that it doesn't date too much.

​17. Flashbacks. They can be super annoying if overused, but here we're given just enough to keep us interested. Young Trish, oh my dear girl! And there's a lot more hinted at that we have yet to see...

18. Inventive villainous behaviour - coffee in the face, hand in the blender - creepy, but throwaway. Eyes wide open and face cutting time, twisted evil. Children left locked in the cupboard, truly terrifying.

19. I've always thought someday a sandwich might save someone.

I have way more points, but I'm already boring my husband on a daily basis with Marvel chat. It's a mixed bag though, I love Agent Carter, Daredevil, JJ and am looking forward to Deadpool, but care less about the Avengers and found Agents of Shield very tedious and my feelings on Spiderman can be summed below.

I'm still working on my Italy trip posts, but since then I've popped down to London and also been in Poland for a week - somewhere in between I also made it to another All Night Horror Madness and read some more books. I even went to the gym twice! And then sort of got busy not exercising and going out to lovely interesting sociable dinners instead because of who I am as a person, but it wasn't terrible and I may even try it again sometime soon...

So I will get to all of that and the ANHM review along with Rome/Naples/Maiori/Pompei posts are coming. First though I'm going to talk about my second visit to Poland and some business travel stuff.

Florence - a strange visit. An historic and artistic city, but one I had the misfortune to experience whilst being feasted alive upon. Which was appropriate given that we were staying a rejected set from a Dario Argento movie (more on that later). The views were incredible, but I did not have the best experience.

We hit our first rough patch of having a small spending budget, we got lost on the way to the apartment (by walking way past it), it was very, very hot, we were pestered a fair bit in this city by professional-tourist-chasers and this is when the mosquito buffet really got going. All of this added up to a lack of sleep and general disquiet for us. Plus a few places we had wanted to see happened to be closed for maintenance on the days we were visiting.